I packed my duffel bag with a small, quiet smile. Today was the day. After seven years of waiting, Rhett and I were finally heading to the Colorado mountains for a joint pack retreat. This trip was supposed to finalize our Mate Ceremony. I touched the silver pendant resting against my collarbone. Rhett had given it to me three years ago. *A promise,* he had said, kissing my forehead. My inner wolf, Reya, let out a soft whine of hope. Maybe this time, things would be different. Maybe I would finally be treated like his Luna.
The drive up the mountain in the pack convoy was beautiful, but the silence in our car was heavy. Rhett kept checking his phone. His jaw was tight, his fingers drumming against the steering wheel. I didn't know then that Paris was already texting him. I didn't know she was claiming she couldn't be alone, trailing right behind our convoy uninvited.
We arrived at the Alpha lodge by late afternoon. It was a stunning log cabin with a roaring stone fireplace. But my fragile joy didn't even last two hours.
A silver car pulled up the driveway. The door swung open, and Paris stumbled out. She was clutching her chest, tears streaming down her pale face.
"Rhett!" she cried out. Her breathy, trembling voice immediately grated on my nerves.
Rhett was out the door before I could even blink. "Paris? What are you doing here?"
"I'm so sorry," she whimpered, collapsing against his chest. "I tried to stay home, but my wolf... the anxiety is just too much. The drafts in my house triggered my nightmares. I can't breathe, Rhett. I'm so scared."
I stood on the porch and watched his arms wrap tightly around her. My chest tightened. Through our mate bond, I felt his protective instincts flare up like a beacon. Not for me. For her.
"It's okay, Paris. I've got you," Rhett murmured. He looked up at me, his eyes already making the decision. "Claire, she's having a severe panic attack. She needs the heat from the lodge to calm her wolf."
Before I could even process the humiliation, Rhett was moving my bags. He didn't ask. He just relocated my things to the old outpost at the very edge of the territory.
The outpost was a nightmare. The windows were cracked, letting in the biting wind, and the furnace was completely dead. I sat on the edge of a dusty, bare mattress, shivering in my winter coat. The mountain air was freezing, but the cold inside my heart was so much worse.
Through the mate bond, I could feel Rhett. I felt his warmth, his steady heartbeat, his soothing energy. He was pouring all of it into Paris. Hours passed. The sun set, plunging the broken room into icy darkness. Every pulse of the bond felt like a knife twisting in my gut. Seven years. Seven years of swallowing my pride. Seven years of standing in the shadows while he played hero to a woman who weaponized her fragility.
Around midnight, the heavy wooden door creaked open.
Rhett stepped inside, rubbing the back of his neck. The heavy scent of Paris's vanilla perfume rolled off his jacket. It suffocated my senses, making my stomach turn.
"Hey," he said softly. He didn't even shiver. His Alpha blood kept him perfectly warm. "I'm sorry it took so long. She was just so terrified. She really needed me to stay until she fell asleep."
He reached out to touch my arm. I stepped back. His hand fell to his side.
"Claire, come on. Don't be like this," he sighed, sounding annoyed.
"Like what, Rhett?" My voice was terrifyingly calm.
"I just spent four hours freezing in a broken cabin while my fated mate held another woman in our bed."
"She was having an episode!" he snapped, his Alpha tone leaking out to press against my chest. "You know she's fragile. You're strong, Claire. You can handle a little discomfort. She can't."
*You're strong.*
The words echoed in my head. That was my curse, wasn't it? I was reliable. I was obedient. I let him treat me like a placeholder while he gave his heart to someone else.
My fingers went to my neck. I unclasped the silver pendant. The metal felt heavy and cold in my palm. I walked over to the dusty nightstand and placed it down with a soft click.
Rhett frowned, his annoyance shifting into confusion. "What are you doing? Put that back on."
I looked him dead in the eyes. Reya howled in my mind—a sound of pure, agonizing grief. But I didn't cry. I was completely out of tears.
"I, Claire Taylor," I started. My voice was steady and clear.
Rhett's eyes widened in sheer horror. He took a step forward. "Claire, stop!"
"Reject you, Alpha Rhett Evans, as my mate."
The words hung in the freezing air for a split second. Then, the bond snapped.
It felt like a white-hot wire being violently ripped from my chest. I gasped, stumbling back as the soul-deep pain seared through my veins.
Rhett didn't just stumble. He let out a guttural, blood-curdling scream. He dropped to his knees, clawing at his own chest. His inner wolf howled in absolute agony, the sound tearing through the silent mountain night.
I didn't stay to watch him bleed. I pulled my coat tighter around my shoulders, turned around, and walked out into the freezing snow. I didn't look back.
